This companion volume to the previous, widely acclaimed Guide to the Identification and Natural History of the Sparrows of the United States and Canada takes sparrow identification one step further. The authors have gathered a stunning selection of over 350 photographs as a basis for the identification of all 64 taxa of emberizine sparrows found in the region. Never before has such a comprehensive collection of sparrow photos been presented together in a single guide.

The supporting text gives detailed information on the identification of species, sexes, ages, races, and forms of all the sparrows, towhees, juncos, buntings and longspurs, grassquits and seedeaters, as well as information on their distribution, habits, habitats, molt, and voice. Particular attention is paid to the geographic variation found in many species and to comparisons with similar and confusing species. The conservation status of those that are threatened is also given due attention.

The photographs include contributions from many of America's finest bird photographers, and many were taken especially for this book. All fine portraits in themselves, they have been chosen specifically to illustrate the identification pointers described in the text. Each is captioned with full details of the photographer and the place and time at which the photo was taken. Also included are line drawings of identification details such as wing and tail feathers and beaks, as well as distribution maps.

Key Features:

Features 350 high quality photographs of each species, subspecies, and racial form identifiable in the field

Includes line drawings of identification details such as wing and tail feathers, beaks, etc.

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Product Description

Review

"[A] book that can be carried into the field with ease. This book should turn those 'little brown jobs' into interesting individuals, and is highly recommended for birders who are trying to sort out the members of this challenging family."--Wildlife Archivist

About the Author

James D. Rising, University of Toronto, Toronto, Canada
--This text refers to an alternate
Paperback
edition.

Most helpful customer reviews

In the winter time here in Virginia we get a number of differnt types of sparrows that migrate in. I love watching them but was having difficulty determining which types were which from just the regular field guides so I asked around and one of our local birders recommended this to me. Its terrific! The pictures of the birds are close-up - as if you were holding the bird or were sitting on the ground less than a foot away looking at the bird. This really helps when trying to distinguish the slight differences in colors or patterns. Each species has a chapter that strats out with measurements (size, weight etc) then there's a range map, and some text on habitat, then some text on behavior and voice/songs. There's writing about similar species, geographic variation, distribution (winter, breeding, migration periods), conservation status, and molt. There's also text descriptions for specific markings etc to hone in on, and discussion of hybrids if any. Then the chapter has pictures, of boys, girls, adults, juveniles, etc. Really a great book that has helped me a lot. I'd buy it again in a heart beat.